Article forming apparatus



Oc't. 14.1947. Jrs. STULL ARTICLE romaine APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 18 1944 IAN/17701? J. 5. 6704/. 5y [44. 4

Oct. 14,- 1947 J. s. $TULL ARTICLE FORMING APPARATUS Filed March 18', 1944. 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 I M'VfA/Tdf? x 5. STULL 8) 4 v ATTORA/f) Patented Oct. 14, 1947 ARTICLE FORMING APPARATUS John S. Stull, Chicago, 111., assignor to Western Electric Company, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York .Application March 18, 1944, Serial No. 527,123

This invention relates to article forming apparatus and more particularly to an apparatus for turning surfaces of armature cores. I

In the manufacture of armature cores, it ha been the practice heretofore to form the cores substantially to the proper configuration and, thereafter, to cut the outer partially circular surfaces thereof in a lathe so that the amount of metal in each leg of the armature core will be as closely the same as in the other leg as is possible. In so forming armature cores, the legs of the core are engaged alternately by the cutting tool and as the cutting tool bites into the core, there is a tendency for the blank being cut to shift with respect to the tool. Thus, where highly accurate cores were desired, it was necessary, after the lathe operation, to grind the surfaces of the core to remove the inequalities formed on the surfaces thereof in the lathe.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple, inexpensive and effective apparatus for expeditiously forming articles.

In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, a blank holding fixture is provided for holding an armature blank to be machined in a drill press. The blank holding fixture is providedwith a series of blank engaging elements, all shiftable under control of a single manipulative device, to press outwardly against internal surfaces of the core blank and to press axially of the core blank, thus to exactly center the core with respect to the fixture. On its upper end, the blank holding fixture has a bearing which engages the interior surfaces of a tubulartool holding member, thereby to assure that the tool holding member will be held coaxially with the blank held by the blank holder during the machining of the outer surfaces of the blank by the tools.

A complete understanding of the invention may be had by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a side elevational view on a relatively small scale of a drill press equipped with mechanism comprising one embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary front elevational view on the same scale as Fig. 1 and showing the portion of the drill press embodying the present invention; 7

Fig. 3- is an enlarged transverse vertical sectional view taken centrally through the fixture and a portion of the head of the drill press and. showing a blank'after it has been machined and also showing the tubular tool-holding fixture in its upper or retracted position;

Fig. 4 is ahorizontal sectional view taken substantially along the line 4 4 of Fig. 3 in the direction of the arrows;

8 Claims. (CI. 8220) Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view taken sub stantially along the line 5-5 of Fig. 3 in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken through the centerline of the tool-holding fixture and the blank-supporting fixture and showing the tools in their lowermost positions;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of a finished armature core machined in the apparatus disclosed in Figs. 1 to 6; and

Fig. 8 is a side elevational view of the core shown in Fig. 7.

As shown most clearly in Fig. 1, the drill press includes a standard l0, which extends from a base I l of the drill press to support a head portion l2. Rotatably mounted in the head portion I2 is a spindle l3 'having fixed thereto a pulley M adapted to be driven by a belt 15. As is usual in drill presses of this type, a manually operable spider or hand wheel I6 is provided for raising and lowering the reciprocable portion 18 of the drill spindle. The spindle I8, when it rotates, will, of course, drive the reciprocable portion l8 thereof and upon manipulation of the spider 16, the portion l8 may be lowered from the position shown in Fig. 1 and may be raised therefrom. Suitably attached to the reciprocable portion I8 of the spindle I3 is a tool-holding tube l9, which, as shown most clearly in Figs. 3 and 6, has a plurality of cutting or turning tools 20 suitably attached to it, for example, by a retainer ring 2| having a tapered wall 22 and a threaded portion 23, the threaded portion being threaded onto a flange 24 formed integrally with the tube ill. The tube I9 is slidable and rotatable in a bearing 25 seated in a bracket 26. The bracket 26 is pro vided with a tapered collar 21 suitably attached thereto or formed integrally therewith and the bearing 25 is seated in this collar 21 by means of retainer rings 28 and 29 threaded onto the bearing 25 and engaging an undersurface of the bracket 26 and the upper surface of the collar 21. The bearing 25 has its outer surface tapered so that it will properly seat within the collar 21 to guide the tube IS in its reciprocation and rotation. The bracket 26, as pointed out hereinbefore, is suitably mounted upon the base II and, in addition to supporting the bearing 25 on its upper surface, serves to support a blank-holding fixture designated generally by the numeral 35. The blank-holding fixture 35 comprises a support block 36 welded or otherwise suitably secured to the base of the bracket 26 and having mounted in it an upright member 31, which is secured in the block 36 by means of machine screws 3838. In addition to receiving the upright member 31, the support block 36 has slidably mounted therein a clamp actuator 39, as seen most clearly in Fig. 6. The clamp actuator is freely slidable in the block 36 and is slotted at its lower end, as shown at 48,,

to receive a lever M, which is pivotally mounted in the member 31, being mounted upon a pivot Pin 42.

As will be seen most clearly in Fig. 5', the-support block 38 is cylindrical in configuration and the bottom portion of the upright member 3'! is:

also substantially cylindrical, beingslotted asc shown at 43, to receive the clamp actuator 59'. Slidably mounted in a central aperture 44 inthe;

bottom portion .of the upright member 3'I-'is"a" wardly with respect to the head II of the upright member 31 by a compression spring 89, which en- 1 gages the upper end of the sleeve 83, and a head sleeve 45, in which there is, in turn, slida-bly mounted a push rod 46.

and has a notch 41 cut therein to receive a-pin-4-8' mounted in the sleeve 45; thereby to prevent the push rod 46 from rotating; The; lower end of the push-rod 4-5 hasa head. portion 49- formedon it and the shank of the push rod -is surrounded vby. a compression spring 50, which engages the lower end of the sleeve 45and the upper surface ofthehead 49 to urge the push rod 46 downwardly with. respect to the sleeve 45 and intoengagement with a cammingportion 5i of a shaft 52. The shaft 52-is; journalled in the support block 36 and is provided, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, with an actuator handle 53, the shaft52 passing through an aperture 54 in the bracket 26. Theicamming por tion 51 of the shaft 52, in addition to engaging the-head portion 49 of the push rod 46, also engages a camming surface 55 on the lever 4|. As pointed out hereinbefore, the. shaft 52* is journ'alled in the support block 35; However, it should be noted that the apertures 55 and 51, in which the shaft '52 isjournalled', are substantially oval in shape and that the aperture 58 in the member 31 is'also substantially oval, thereby to permit vthe shaft 52 to berotated while permitting it a limited amount of. movementvertically. The purpose of this limited movement-of the shaft 52, will become apparent: as the description progresses. bottom of the member 37 is a leaf spring 68, which is fixed to an undersurface of a slot fil formed in the support block'36. This leaf spring normally urges'the lever M to rock counter-clockwise and, therefore, normally urges the clamp actuator 39 upwardly.

Extending upwardly from the bodyportion of the upright member 31 is a post '50 having an enlarged head portion I I, from which there extends a threaded shank'IZ; The shank." has a preloaded anti-friction bearing I3 fixed to it by means of a retainer nut 14, which holds the antifriction bearing and a gasket in place on the post 78. The gasket. I5 is clamped between a pairof gasket retaining rings 75 and 71, which are interposed between the bottom of the anti-friction bearing 73 and the head portion II. The antifr'iction bearing 73 .is slidable withinthe tube- I9 and .has its outer race relievedtotendto reduce the friction between the inner wall of the tube I9 and the post 18 and alsotends to properly locate the cutting tools with respect to a blank.- It vheldon the blank-holding fixture 35. The clamp actuator 39 has a clamp 19 pivotally mounted on it by means of a pivot pin 88,; which extends through the clamp'IQ and is fixed in up standing lugs 8-I--8I formed on the clamp actuator 39. The clamp'IS cooperates with a clampinglug 82 formedintegrally with thepost l 8; thus to serve as a guide for-the upper end of-thesleeva 45:and for the lower end' of a sleeve 83 positioned in directvertical alignment with the lsleevex45a The sleeves 45..and 83 are of similar construction in that the upperend'of. thesleeve 45-is provided:

Positioned in a slot 59 formed in the The push rod 45. is mounted for limited movement in the sleeve 45 I --portion 95of a push rod SI, similar to the push rod 46.- The push rod 8| is slidable within the sleeve 83 and the sleeve 83 is provided with a slot 92, into which extends the reduced end 93 of a set screw 94, threaded into the post I0. In this manner, the amount of movement of the sleeve 83 is limited and, correspondingly, the amount of movement of the push rod 9| is also limited.

Set into a head portion IBI of the sleeve 45, as-

shown most clearly in Figs. 3 and 5, are a pair of vpositioning members I02 and I83, Which are re tained in thehead portion IUI by retainer pins I04 and I05, Which extend through slots I86 and H31 in-thepositioning members I02 and I03, respectively; Otherwise, the positioning members are; i freely slidable in slots I88 and I59 formed in the head portion IllI. In a manner similar to that just-described, the sleeve 83 is provided with two positioning members H2 and H3 positioned in slots IM and H5 and retained in place by pins lit-and I ll (Figs. 3 and 4) which extend through slots I I8 and -I I9, respectively, in the positioning members I i2 and I IS. The inner ends of the positioning members I52, 583, H2 and H3 are ta-' pered to be engaged by the push rods 45 and 9|,

.which are provided with cooperating ta ercd ends or cam faces adapted to engage the tapered inner ends of the positioning members and to cam them outwardly into engagement with the sides I25I2l3'of the armature blank I8.

In: the operation of the apparatus, an armature blank-"I8; which is to have the portions I2I, as

pletion of a previous operation on an armature blankiS; the handle 53 was manipulated to permit .thespring. 65 to move the clamp actuator 39 upwardiy'and to permit the springs 50 and B9 to movethepush rods 46 and SI away from a In other words, the cam portion 5I of the shaft 52 blank held between the sleeves 45 and 83.

will be rocked to a position opposite tothat shown in Fig. 6 to permit the clamp I9 to be disengaged from the clamping lug 82 and to permit the sleeve- 45 to drop downwardly asufficient distance so that'the blank 78 heldon the blank-holding fixture .35 maybe removed therefrom. The toolcarrying tube I9 having been retracted to its upper position, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the apparatus is now in condition to receive a blank to be machined or turned to the configuration shown 1 in Figs. 7 and 8. After the blank has been placedlug182; After the clamp is th us' positio-ned, continued movement of. the c'am 51 under the in fzwfluence of the handle 53 will cause-the sleeve -45 '5 to be moved upwardly by the compression spring 50 to carry the central portion 88 of the blank 18 into engagement with the surfaces 86 and 81 of the sleeve 83. These positioning surfaces will thus tend to hold the blank against movement and the cam 5| will then become effective to compress the springs 50 and 89 and, through the action of the push rods 46 and 9|, the positioning members I02, I03, H2 and H3 will be forced outwardly and into engagement with the sides I20 of the blank 18, thus to accurately position the blank with respect to the centerline of the push rods 46 and SI. Since the push rods 46 and 9! are coaxial with the tool-holding tube l9, the blank 18 held by the fixture 35 may be machined by manipulating the spider 16 to cause the tube I9 to move downwardly while it is rotating, thus to carry the tools 20-20 into engagement with the blank 18 to machine its outer surfaces. After the blank has been turned or machined by the tools 2029, the tube may be retracted to its upper position, as shown in Fig. 3, and upon manipulation of the handle 53, the completed blank 18 may be removed from the apparatus and a new blank inserted in place thereof.

In this manner, an accurate turning operation may be performed on a blank in a drill press and the necessity of providing a lathe for this work is eliminated and the blank will be smoothly turned to have the same amount of material in both legs thereof.

What is claimed is:

l. The combin t on of a rotatable and reciprocable tubular tool holder having cutting tools positioned to extend inwardly on said tool holder, with a bank holding fixture for holding a blank in position to be telescoped by said tool holder, said blank holding fixture including a pair of positioning sleeves coaxial with respect to the tool holder and having positioning surfaces thereon engageable with the blank, positioning members movable radially of said sleeves for engaging a blank to position it, and means slidable in said sleeves to actuate said positioning members.

2. The combination with a tubular tool holding fixture of a blank holding fixture for holding a blank in position to be telescoped by said tool holding fixture comprising a stationary upright member, a clamp engageable with said upright member to furnish a guide surface for sleeves in the upright member, a member slidable with respect to said upright member for supporting the clamp, a pair of sleeves slidable in said upright member and carrying surfaces to engage and position a blank, and a common actuator for said clamp and said sleeves including a lever pivoted in the upright member and connected to the member slidable with respect to the upright memher, and a wedging cam supported by said lever and operable to apply an actuating force to the sleeves and clamp.

3. The combination with a tubular tool holding fixture of a blank holding fixture for holding a blank in position to be telescoped by said tool holding fixture comprising a stationary upright member, a clamp engageable with said upright member, a lever fulcrumed in said upright member for actuating said clamp, a pair of sleeves slidable in said upright member and carrying surfaces to engage and position a blank, said clamp serving to aid in guiding said sleeves during the positioning of a blank therebetween, a pair of camming push rods slidable with respect to said sleeves, a pair of positioning members associated with each push rod and slidable radially in said sleeves to engage and position a blank, and common actuating means for the clamp and push rods including a camming member interposed between said lever and one of the push rods and operable to impart force to said push rod and lever in opposite directions.

4. A blank holder for use with a tubular tool holding fixture which telescopes the blank in working on it, comprising a main support member, a pair of blank positioning sleeves slidably mounted in said member and havin blank engaging surfaces thereon for engaging the body of a blank, a clamp positionable to guide said sleeves, a clamp support slidable in said member, and means for imparting relative movement to said clamp and sleeves to actuate the sleeves and position the clamp in guiding relation to the sleeves.

5. A blank holder for use with a tubular tool holding fixture which telescopes the blank in working on it, comprising a main support member, a pair of blank positioning sleeves slidably mounted in said member and havin oppositely disposed blank engaging surfaces thereon for engaging the body of a blank, push rods slidable longitudinally in said sleeves. positioning members slidable transversely in said sleeves, camming surfaces on said push rods for actuating said positioning members, and means for actuating one of said push rods to apply operating pressure to said sleeves and said positioning members.

6. A turning machine comprisin a tubular tool holder, an inwardly directed tool carried by said holder, a work support for an article to be worked upon extending into said tool holder, said support including elements movab e radia ly of said tool holder to engage inner surfaces of the article to be worked, a base for supporting one end of sa d work support. and a bearing in the tubular portion of said tool holder for supporting the end of said work support extending therein.

7. A turning machine comprisng a tubular tool holder, an inwardly directed tool carried by said holder, a work support for an article to be worked upon extending into said tool holder, said support including individual elements movable radially and axially of said tool holder to engage inner angularly disposed surfaces of the article to be worked, a base for supporting one end of said work support, and a bearing slidably mounted in said tubular tool holder for supporting the other end of said work support.

8. A turning machine comprisin a fixed base, a work support on said base, said work support having individual means intermediate its ends adapted to engage inner angularly disposed surfaces of the work for supporting and positioning the work centrally of said support, a tubular tool holder centrally aligned with said support and having an inwardly directed tool, and a bearing for one end of said work support slidably mounted in said tubular tool holder.

JOHN S. STULL.

REFERENCES CITED The. following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,594,903 Gray Aug. 3, 1926 

